+
Coal Ministry Advisor Reviews India UCG Pilot At Kasta
COAL & MINING

Coal Ministry Advisor Reviews India UCG Pilot At Kasta

Union Ministry of Coal advisor B. Veera Reddy visited the Underground coal gasification (UCG) pilot research and development (R&D) project at Kasta in Jharkhand. The project is managed by Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL) and is India’s first underground coal gasification pilot.

Reddy was received by senior ECL executives and inspected the site to assess implementation progress. Senior management and technical representatives from Ergo Exergy Technologies Inc. (EETI), Canada, provided a briefing on the pilot plant’s functional units.

The Kasta West development spans the Raniganj and Pandaveswar areas across the West Bengal–Jharkhand border. The venture is a strategic R&D initiative funded directly by the Coal India Limited (CIL) R&D Board as a targeted research scheme rather than via commercial surface gasification incentives. Exact capital costs have not been publicly itemised.

The project is led jointly by ECL and the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI), Ranchi, with technical support from EETI. It is structured as a two-year, two-phase programme to establish technical feasibility and achieve pilot-scale in situ syngas production. Following exploratory drilling on 22 June 2024, trial work is nearing completion and the initiative will move to initial commercial evaluation.

ECL is advancing a surface gasification project at Sonepur Bazari in West Bengal that is expected to be operational in about a year; the joint venture with CIL and GAIL is estimated at Rs 130,528 mn to produce synthetic natural gas. The company has been awarded India’s first underground coal gasification project by the Ministry of Coal and commercial production from the pilot is projected to start within a couple of months. These efforts support the National Coal Gasification Mission, which aims to achieve 100 mn t of coal and lignite gasification by 2030, and the Union Cabinet has approved a financial incentive framework of Rs 375,000 mn for surface projects.

Union Ministry of Coal advisor B. Veera Reddy visited the Underground coal gasification (UCG) pilot research and development (R&D) project at Kasta in Jharkhand. The project is managed by Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL) and is India’s first underground coal gasification pilot. Reddy was received by senior ECL executives and inspected the site to assess implementation progress. Senior management and technical representatives from Ergo Exergy Technologies Inc. (EETI), Canada, provided a briefing on the pilot plant’s functional units. The Kasta West development spans the Raniganj and Pandaveswar areas across the West Bengal–Jharkhand border. The venture is a strategic R&D initiative funded directly by the Coal India Limited (CIL) R&D Board as a targeted research scheme rather than via commercial surface gasification incentives. Exact capital costs have not been publicly itemised. The project is led jointly by ECL and the Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI), Ranchi, with technical support from EETI. It is structured as a two-year, two-phase programme to establish technical feasibility and achieve pilot-scale in situ syngas production. Following exploratory drilling on 22 June 2024, trial work is nearing completion and the initiative will move to initial commercial evaluation. ECL is advancing a surface gasification project at Sonepur Bazari in West Bengal that is expected to be operational in about a year; the joint venture with CIL and GAIL is estimated at Rs 130,528 mn to produce synthetic natural gas. The company has been awarded India’s first underground coal gasification project by the Ministry of Coal and commercial production from the pilot is projected to start within a couple of months. These efforts support the National Coal Gasification Mission, which aims to achieve 100 mn t of coal and lignite gasification by 2030, and the Union Cabinet has approved a financial incentive framework of Rs 375,000 mn for surface projects.

Related Stories

Gold Stories

Next Story
Infrastructure Transport

97 Per Cent Of Rongjeng-Mangsang-Adokgre Road Nears Completion

Deputy Chief Minister in-charge of public works Prestone Tynsong said in Shillong on 26 August that 97 per cent physical progress had been achieved on the ongoing Rongjeng-Mangsang-Adokgre road being constructed under the Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR). He noted the project was sanctioned in 2017 and that the stipulated time for completion had been 24 months from issue of the final work order. The deputy chief minister informed the assembly that the government had decided to include the remaining work under a World Bank project. In reply to a query from Rongjeng MLA Jim M Sangm..

Next Story
Infrastructure Transport

First TBM Starts Digging Five Point Three Kilometre Tunnel Under SGNP

The Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) Phase three (B) project has reached a key milestone as the first tunnel boring machine (TBM) began excavation of the first of two tunnels beneath the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP). The machine, named Tulsi, started cutting a five point three kilometre bore that will link Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari in Goregaon East with Amar Nagar in Mulund West. Officials issued a statement noting the commencement of tunnelling work under the protected green belt. The twin tunnels are being constructed using mechanised tunnelling methods that aim to limit surface di..

Next Story
Infrastructure Transport

UP Approves Two Expressways And Rs 240 bn Infrastructure Push

The Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved a series of infrastructure and industrial investment proposals totalling Rs 240 billion (Rs 240 bn), including two major expressway projects, a manufacturing and logistics cluster in Sultanpur and incentives for 11 industrial projects across the state. The decisions, taken at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, underline the state government’s focus on expanding road connectivity around emerging industrial hubs while attracting manufacturing investment to districts beyond major urban centres. The approvals cover both greenfield expressway c..

Advertisement

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Get daily newsletters around different themes from Construction world.

STAY CONNECTED

Advertisement

SPECIAL OFFER
QR Code